A Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant, Otunba Segun Adewale, has kicked off his mobilisation in Ekiti State with distribution of electronic gadgets to empower residents.

Adewale, who has commenced his ward-to-ward visit, ahead of the primary and the 2018 election, said his main policy thrust is to banish poverty from Ekiti land.

He said the stomach infrastructure policy of Governor Ayo Fayose is “portraying Ekiti people as hungry and poverty-stricken,” adding that “the people deserve more a kongo of rice and cash stipends.”

Adewale, who was a senatorial aspirant in Lagos West District of Lagos State, is a former PDP Chairman in Lagos State. He hails from Ipoti-Ekiti, Ijero Local Government Area in Ekiti Central Senatorial District.

The politician popularly called “Aeroland” who has kicked off his familiarisation visit to wards in Ekiti with distribution of smart television sets, motorbikes and smart cell phones, promised to eradicate poverty through massive skills acquisition scheme and provision of enduring social amenities, inspired his ambition to become the governor of the state in 2018.

“Rather than giving kongos of rice, we are giving motorbikes, flat screen television sets and smart phones to the people as our own Christmas gifts and Stomach Infrastructure for them.

“The moment you give them rice, you are not dignifying Ekiti, you are saying that is their worth, but we are saying they can get better deals in TV sets, phones and others.

“This is to wake them up that they can get better things. If I have never held any political position in my life and can give these items out of my private pocket, imagine what I would do when I become the governor.

“We are giving 1000 telephones per ward in 177 wards in all 16 local government areas, 10 television sets per ward, and 10 motorbikes for each of 16 local government areas. When we do this, people will now believe in themselves.

“We will work with Chinese investors to come and start producing their phones here in Ekiti and we will give them all the incentives to make the project a reality.

“For us to overcome poverty, we must change our people’s orientation, and establish technology and give adequate power.

“We will give huge grants to department in universities to generate power for the state and sponsor many other productive ventures in the schools.”

Adewale said he was saddened that an average Ekiti man has been impoverished by successive governments and made to believe that his miserable condition cannot be made better.

He added: “I am here to change the perspective of the people, their minds have been conditioned to poverty, successive governments have also stamped it that poverty is in Ekiti. So my people see that and resigned to fate.

“We will start by changing their mindsets which had been bastardised for years that they can be educated and still be poor.

“We will now convert the knowledge to wealth, we will make sure that you are not only educated, but you have a trade that guarantees you wealth.”